José Avillez Profile Piece Write-Up

By Shayna Waltower

This piece was published on CNN under the “Travel” section. It is a collection of photos that tells a short story about José Avillez and his restaurants and takes readers on a brief cuisine tour through Portugal.

When I was searching for a piece to write about, I started with CNN, because I had previously watched and read several of their other profile pieces and knew that this source often publishes and airs intriguing profile stories. I chose this piece because of its creative use of photography and captions to tell a story. It does not follow the traditional model and layout of a profile story, but it covers the foundational elements required for an informational subject piece.

The story begins with an interesting lead.

“The most celebrated chef in Portugal — Jose Avillez, the mastermind behind Lisbon’s fist two-Michelin-star restaurant…”

It grabs the readers’ attention and compels them to continue through the post.

As the story continues, it dives a little deeper into Avillez’s background and his work, capitalizing on the element of human interest that many feature articles possess. It draws the reader in to learn more about this famous restaurateur and can be a piece of interest especially to readers who do not live in Portugal and want to know about someone who lives and works outside of their country.

This story has several journalistic qualities in that it tells a story and offers a unique perspective on the topic of restaurants and cuisine. The article states that Avillez started his cooking career before the industry became popular. It also emphasizes the success he has obtained in his work and the great popularity that he and his culinary creations have gained both in Portugal and internationally.